Past Tense Of Sing
The past tense of "sing" can be a bit tricky because it involves irregular forms. The simple past tense of "sing" is "sang," while the past participle form is "sung."
Understanding the Past Tense Forms of "Sing"
The verb "sing" is irregular, meaning it doesn't follow the standard rules for forming past tenses.
Instead of adding "-ed" to the base form, "sing" changes to "sang" in the simple past tense and "sung" in the past participle.
How to Use "Sang" Correctly
"Sang" is the simple past tense form of "sing." Use "sang" when referring to an action that was completed in the past.
Examples:
She sang beautifully at the concert last night.
They sang the national anthem before the game started.
Common Mistakes:
Incorrect: She has sang that song before.
Correct: She has sung that song before.
Tip: Remember that "sang" is used without auxiliary verbs like "have" or "has."
How to Use "Sung" Correctly
"Sung" is the past participle form of "sing." Use "sung" with auxiliary verbs like "have," "has," or "had" to indicate actions that were completed at some point before now.
Examples:
She has sung that song many times.
They have sung together since childhood.
Common Mistakes:
Incorrect: They sung the song yesterday.
Correct: They sang the song yesterday.
Tip: Use "sung" in perfect tenses (present perfect, past perfect, future perfect).
More Rules and Examples
When forming the present perfect tense, combine "have" or "has" with "sung": "I have sung," "He has sung."
When forming the past perfect tense, use "had" with "sung": "They had sung."
In passive voice constructions, use "sung": "The song was sung by the choir."
Examples:
Present Perfect: The choir has sung at many events.
Past Perfect: By the time we arrived, the choir had already sung.
Passive Voice: The anthem was sung by the audience.
Practice Exercises
Exercise 1: Fill-in-the-Blank Sentences
She ____ (sing) a beautiful song yesterday.
They ____ (have) ____ (sing) that song many times.
By the time we arrived, they ____ (had) ____ (sing).
Answers:
She sang a beautiful song yesterday.
They have sung that song many times.
By the time we arrived, they had sung.
Exercise 2: Rewrite the Paragraph
Rewrite the following paragraph using the correct past tense forms of "sing":
Yesterday, the children sing a song at the school assembly. They have sing this song before, but this time it sounded even better. The teacher said they had sing beautifully.
Rewritten Paragraph:
Yesterday, the children sang a song at the school assembly. They have sung this song before, but this time it sounded even better. The teacher said they had sung beautifully.